Acceptance Matters, And Now We Know By How Much

Recently, MasterCard partnered with Kaiser Associates to conduct a study to quantify the value of commercial card acceptance. While the results were not unexpected to MasterCard — card acceptance at the point-of-sale for commercial transactions is 37 percent less costly than using other collections methods — B2B suppliers might find that data surprising.

*Early payment discounts are often less efficient for suppliers than offering a card payment option; and

*The bulk of value from commercial card acceptance lies in its use as a prepayment tool – providing revenue assurance against bad debts.

“Supplier acceptance is largely hindered by an education gap,” says Ed Downs, senior business leader, U.S. Commercial Products for MasterCard. “We have found that many merchants are just not aware of the financial benefits of card acceptance, but are willing to increase acceptance if presented a business case demonstrating the value. This research provides that business case.”